The Muscles: An Overview

The muscles of your legs are integral to most daily activities: walking, running, bending…really, any kind of full-body movement. However, despite their hard work, our legs are often the recipient of much hatred and disgust.

Our legs are composed of several different muscle groups, but for the purposes of this sheet, we will focus on your quadriceps (the big muscles in the front of the leg), the hamstrings (the large muscles in the back of the leg) and your calves (the muscles on the lower back half of the leg).

Sure with the right kind of camouflage you may feel secure enough to walk around without fear of reprisal, but how likely are you to bare these parts freely and with confidence? Do you really like the way your legs look? Most of us don’t. According to a recent Fitness Magazine survey only 28% of respondents said they love their legs.


Fortunately there is a solution and it doesn’t involve expensive treatments, fancy equipment or surgery: exercise. When done regularly (along with cardio and a proper diet) you’ll soon be looking for opportunities to flaunt your toned, lean, legs.

The Workout

Working out with a trainer is your best bet to ensure you exercise in the most challenging and beneficial way. However, sometimes a personal training session is impossible so when you find yourself in that position, pick up this sheet and let it help guide to getting a great workout.

Warm Up

Before you start your strength-training workout be sure to warm up. Warm muscles respond better to exercise and a warm up will also help prevent any injuries. Spend about 5-10 minutes on a stationary bike, Stairmaster, elliptical or treadmill.

Now that you’re warm, let’s get started

Squats

• Stand holding a light barbell resting across your shoulders with hands wider than shoulder-width apart. Place your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, feet angled slightly outward. Pull your shoulders back slightly and look straight ahead.

• Slowly bend at the knees, leaning your chest forward slightly and lower until your thighs are just above parallel to the ground. Don't bounce at the bottom, but don't stop either.

• Push through your heels to drive yourself back up to starting position (don’t lock your knees). Inhale and repeat.

• Continue until fatigued (when you cannot perform a full repetition with good form).

Tip: Be sure not to put any pressure on your knees; the whole movement is executed through your glutes by pushing through your heels.

Lunges

• Position your feet about shoulder width apart, with your feet pointing straight ahead. Pick up a pair of hand weights (or a barbell placed on your shoulders).

• Step your left foot forward, keeping your leg centered over your ankle. Make sure your knee doesn't go beyond your toes or you'll place extreme tension on the tendons of your knee.

• Bend your knee until it is at a 90-degree angle. Pushing off with your heel (not your knees), straighten your leg.

• Repeat until fatigued (when you cannot perform a full repetition with good form), then switch legs.

Tip: Stay focused on your front leg even if you feel tension in your back leg. Think of your back leg as the balancer and your front leg muscles as the primary mover. Work one leg at a time rather than alternating between one leg and the other.

Dumbbell Lunges (Step-Ups)

• Stand with your feet forward and positioned at least hip-width apart; grab a pair of hand weights for each hand.

• Step one foot forward, about the same length as your quadriceps (from your hip to your knee) either on the floor or on a bench in front of you. (For example, if you step forward with your left leg, your left knee should be directly over your left ankle. Your right knee should be directly under your right hip, and your right thigh should be perpendicular to the floor.)

• When coming back to the starting position, focus on straightening the knee and the hip. The front leg is the primary mover, while the back leg is used only for balance.

• Repeat until fatigued (when you cannot perform a full repetition with good form), and then switch legs.

Tip: Don't let the knee travel over the toes because this can place extreme tension on the tendons of the knee.

Hamstring Curl

• Lie facedown on a leg-curl machine and position your Achilles' tendons below the padded lever with your knees off the edge of the pad.

• Keep your back flat as you raise your feet toward your glutes in a deliberate motion. Squeeze the muscles and lower your feet with a controlled speed.

• Repeat until fatigued (when you cannot perform a full repetition with good form),

Tip: Make sure that you never lock your knees out when you are in the standing position as this will place undo stress on your knee joints and will also maximize the stimulation of your thigh muscles. Also remember to maintain proper form by keeping your back flat against the pad, head up and abs tight to support your spine.

Stiff-Legged Deadlifts

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, balancing your weight on your heels. Grab a light barbell with your palms down and place your hands about shoulder-width apart.

• Bend at the hips, and as you lower the weight, move the hips backward slightly.

• Lower the weight until you get a good stretch of the hamstrings, but don't start bending at the shoulders or lower back.

• Once you have reached the bottom of the exercise, return to the starting vertical position by slowly and simultaneously moving the hips and bar toward each other while keeping perfect spinal alignment.

• Repeat until fatigued (when you cannot perform a full repetition with good form),

Tip: Keep the knees in a soft, semi-locked position, held tight by the quads. This will allow you to fully stretch the hamstrings as you lower the weight. Practice keeping the neck in line with the rest of your spine as much as you can and don't round your upper, middle, or lower back.

Standing Calf Raise with Barbell

• Position a barbell on the back of your shoulders with hands at either side. Place toes and balls of feet on calf block (or step) with arches and heels extending off.

• Raise heels by extending ankles as high as possible.

• Lower heels by bending ankles until calves are stretched.

• Repeat until fatigued (when you cannot perform a full repetition with good form),

Work towards completing 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps of each exercise. Don’t rush through the movements; make sure you are doing them with good form. Remember, speed doesn’t count, form does!

Stretching

After you’ve worked your muscles, it’s important to stretch them. Stretching after strength training is imperative to help prevent injury and for the muscles to recover quicker. Plus, it feels good.

Stretch #1

• Lie on your back, lift legs in the air and bend the right leg to place the right ankle on the opposite knee.

• Use the flexed leg to push the crossed leg back until you feel a stretch in your buttocks.

• Hold stretch and breathe deeply; switch legs.

Stretch #2

• Lie down on the floor with your right leg straight.

• Bend your left leg and lower it across your body, holding the knee down toward the floor with your right hand.

• Place your left arm comfortably beside you and turn your head to the left. Imagine you have a weight tied to your tailbone. Let your tailbone fall back toward the floor as your chest reaches in the opposite direction to stretch your lower back.

• Hold stretch and breathe deeply; switch legs.

By doing these exercises on a regular basis with at least 24 hours of rest time in between workouts, you will help to sculpt your lower body to give those lean, sexy legs that will beg for shorts weather.

Remember to consistently improve muscle strength and the impact of your workouts, you need to keep things fresh: frequently add some variety to your routine and don’t be afraid to shake things up by trying new things. One of the easiest ways to do that is to change the order of your routine. That simple modification can make a big difference in your results.